All the Skills to Succeed: Report of the Newfoundland and Labrador Skills Task Force (March 2007)
Reducing Poverty: An Action Plan for Newfoundland and Labrador (June 2006)
Return on Investment (ROI) Analysis of Bridging the Gap Projects (2007)
The International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey (IALSS): Building on our Competencies (2003)
The White Paper on Post Secondary Education (2005)
TOWES (Test of Workplace Essential Skills)
TOWES is an effective assessment that uses authentic workplace documents, a bank of test items to accurately measure three essential skills that are needed for safe and productive employment: Reading Text, Document Use and Numeracy. TOWES is best utilized as a form of pre and post assessment.
TOWES is significantly different from other skills assessments. Test takers must assume the role of a worker and use information embedded in authentic documents to solve real problems. Some of the documents used include, catalogues, order forms, labels and schematics. TOWES provides a more valid way of describing adult skills than grade-level comparisons, which imply an equivalency between the skills, used by children and those used by adults. TOWES is a good predictor of success in training and can pinpoint skills gaps.
For more information on TOWES, visit www.towes.ca
WILM (Workplace Informal Learning Matrix)
The WILM (Workplace Informal Learning Matrix) may be used to target training needs and learning plans, help defi ne job descriptions and job categories, benchmark competencies for a work group or work team, benchmark competencies across job categories within a company and compare job descriptions with the National Summary.
WILM would be beneficial to target training and learning plans for training participants. This tool can assess the “softer” essential skills such as:
- Working with Others
- Oral Communication
- Problem-solving
- Decision-making
- Leadership
- Learning
- Workplace Culture
Once the training participants have completed the WILM, the results can demonstrate what the participants already know and can do. Trainers can then determine strengths/needs and potential areas to develop throughout the training program.
For more information on WILM: www.wilm.ca